WALLA WALLA, Wash. (August 1, 2026) – A night after clinching a postseason spot, the Walla Walla Sweets nearly gave Borleske Stadium another late comeback to remember.

Sam Kane became the first player in the WCL South Division to reach double-digit home runs, Gage Reeser drove in five and the Sweets brought the winning run to the plate in the ninth before falling 11-10 to the Portland Pickles on Saturday night.

The loss evened the series at one game apiece and set up a rubber match Sunday in Walla Walla’s final home game of the regular season.

Portland struck first with a run in the top of the first, but Kane answered quickly.

Leading off the bottom of the second, Kane launched a mammoth solo home run over the left field fence to tie the game at 1-1. The blast traveled 424 feet and was his 10th homer of the summer, making him the first player in the WCL South to reach that mark this season.

Portland went back ahead in the third, but the Sweets responded again in the bottom half.

Logan Nakamura, Cole Rogers, and Trevor Tse reached to load the bases, and Reeser worked a walk to bring Nakamura home. Kane followed with a sacrifice fly to score Rogers, giving Walla Walla a 3-2 lead.

After Portland tied the game in the fifth, the Sweets put together another answer in the bottom of the inning.

Rogers reached ahead of Reeser, who sent his fourth home run of the summer over the fence for a two-run shot. Kane then reached and scored on an RBI single from Gunner Geile, stretching Walla Walla’s lead to 6-3.

Portland chipped away with one run in the sixth and one in the seventh before moving ahead with three runs in the eighth.

The Sweets got one back in the bottom half. Bo Stinson reached before Tse and Kane helped load the bases, and Royce Hale worked a walk to score Stinson and cut the deficit to 8-7.

Portland added three more in the ninth, but Walla Walla did not go quietly.

Jaylen Kennedy singled, Rogers walked and Tse singled to load the bases with two outs. Reeser then delivered a two-run single into center field, scoring Kennedy and Rogers to make it 11-9.

Kane followed with an RBI single to right field, bringing Tse home and cutting the margin to one.

Hale walked to load the bases, bringing the winning run to second, but Portland escaped the inning to hold on for the 11-10 final.

Kane led the offense with another standout night, going 3-for-4 with a home run, three RBIs, two runs scored, a walk and a sacrifice fly. His 10th homer continued one of the strongest power seasons in the league.

Reeser finished 2-for-5 with a home run, five RBIs, a walk and a stolen base. He drove in runs in three different plate appearances and helped fuel both Walla Walla rallies.

Rogers reached four times with two hits, two walks, three runs scored and a stolen base. Tse added two hits, a walk and a run scored, while Geile and Kennedy each recorded two-hit nights.

Royce Hale reached twice with two walks and an RBI, and Gaines Haussin added a hit as six Sweets finished with multi-hit games. Walla Walla totaled 15 hits and drew nine walks.

Perry Stow started for the Sweets and worked four innings, allowing two runs on six hits while striking out three.

Duncan Bos made his Walla Walla debut out of the bullpen in the fifth. The left-hander struck out two in his first inning as a Sweet.

Carson Waples, Quade Gonzalez IV, and JT Lewis covered the final four innings for Walla Walla, with Gonzalez striking out one over two innings.

The Sweets have now split the first two games of the weekend series after taking Friday’s playoff-clinching opener, 8-6.

Walla Walla returns to Borleske Stadium on Sunday, August 2, for the rubber match against Portland and the final home game of the regular season. First pitch is set for 7:05 p.m., with a mystery giveaway before the game and fireworks scheduled after the game.